judicial review

delegated powers

according to the natural rights philosophy, people always retain their basic rights, but provisionally entrust or assign certain powers to their government for certain, limited purposes. the powers of government are therefore "delegated powers" in that they are granted by the people, and the people can take them back if the government fails to fulfill its purposes.

platform

abolitionists

grandfather clause

provisions of laws passed in the south after the civil war stating that citizens could vote only if their grandfathers had been allowed to vote. the law made it impossible for african americans to vote because their grandfathers had been excluded from voting.

adversary system

due process of law

a requirement stated in the fifth and fourteenth amendments that treatment by states and federal government in matter of life, liberty, or property of individuals be reasonable, fair, and follow known rules and procedures

fundamental rights

incporporation

the process through which the U.S. Supreme Court has applied the due process clause of the fourteenth amendment to extend the reach of the Bill of Rights to include protection from interference by states

equality of condition

equality of opportunity

a right guaranteed by both federal and many states laws against discrimination in employment, education, housing, or credit rights due to a person's race, color, sex, and sometimes sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, or handicap